Literary Time Out: Blog Tour: Loving Leah by Lynne Larson

Reviews * Giveaway

Loving Leah by Lynne Larson

Book Description:

“Promise me, Ethan, no matter what, you must stay here! You can’t make a sound! Promise me you won’t!”

Caught in the middle of a massacre in Lawrence, Kansas, during the Civil War, Leah Donaldson, a twenty-year-old Mormon governess, must risk everything to save two children in her care—and she lives to pay dearly for the decision. Young Ethan Pace loves Leah and can hardly stay still as she is taken away by the enemy for refusing to reveal where he and his sister are hiding.

Five years later, Ethan desperately searches for her, trying to reconcile all that has happened and grappling with his feelings for her. Still idealizing Leah, he hopes she has survived and that he can help her get to Zion and her people. But after everything she’s been through since they last met, will Leah overcome her regrets and allow love into her life? Will she come to see Ethan as the caring man he has become rather than the lovesick boy she once knew?

Rorie's Review:

This book started out a bit choppy and slow for me. It took a few chapters, but eventually I found myself drawn in to the story. I really came to like Ethan, Toe and Leah. The massacre in Lawrence was heartbreaking, even more so when I found out that it really happened. I could really understand Ethan's need for vengeance and his strong desire to find out what happened to Leah. It was interesting to see how Ethan changed and matured after the massacre and even more so during his journey to find and help Leah.

The ending didn't happen the way I was hoping it would, but even so, I felt that the story was nicely resolved.

Andrea's Review:

I wasn't sure what to think about Loving Leah when I read the book description, but I enjoy historical fiction so I decided to accept the opportunity to review it.

I was pulled in right away by the characters and the intriguing historical aspects. Leah was such a great person, and you couldn't help but like her as seen through Ethan's adoring eyes. It is hard to imagine living during the Civil War, but I thought the author did a good job portraying the attitudes abounding during that time.

I was expecting a bit more to the story (the bulk of the book is given away in the description). I thought it was well written, but the ending wasn't what I expected (or hoped for). That isn't necessarily a bad thing-often it makes for an excellent story. However, I really like a solid resolution, and I felt that I'd become quite invested in the main character's life, but was left hanging about him and his future.

Tarah's Review:

This book starts out with Ethan as a child, and introduces the premise of the story. It was good, and interesting (especially the historical aspect of it), but honestly, it lasted way too long. It would have been better had it been a few chapters. I kept feeling like I was waiting for the story to really start, and I was more than half-way through the book. And I can't say anything about the end without spoilers, but I felt like it would have made for a more interesting middle of the book instead of an ending. I was left unsatisfied after finishing this book, mostly because I still can't decide on what the purpose of it was supposed to be. Is it a romance? Is it historical fiction? I know those can go together (they are some of my favorite novels) but this book really had me questioning what the author was trying to accomplish with this one. The characters and the writing and the descriptions are all solid, it was just the main idea that had me floundering.

Tour Schedule:

*April 25^th: http://literarytimeout.blogspot.com/, http://www.wishfulendings.com/

*April 26^th: http://empowermoms.net/, http://sweetlymadejustforyou.com/blog/, https://atransparentmom.com/

*April 27^th: http://mybookaday.blogspot.com/, http://www.bonnieharris.blogspot.com/, http://www.littlelightdesigncollective.com/category/entertainment/books/

*April 28^th: http://katiescleanbookcollection.blogspot.com/, http://gettingyourreadonaimeebrown.blogspot.com/, http://ldsandlovinit.blogspot.com/, http://seekingwithallyurheart.blogspot.com/

*April 29^th: http://www.singinglibrarianbooks.com/adults, http://booksaresanity.blogspot.com/, http://www.blogginboutbooks.com/

Tour Giveaway:

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